U.S President-elect Donald Trump has indicated interest to keep TikTok for a little while amid president Joe Biden plan to enforce a ban on the short-form video platform in less than a month.
Report by Reuters revealed that Trump made this comments before a crowd of conservative supporters in Phoenix, Arizona.
In his words,
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“I think we’re going to have to start thinking because, you know, we did go on TikTok, and we had a great response with billions of views, billions and billions of views. They brought me a chart, and it was a record, and it was so beautiful to see, and as I looked at it, I said, ‘Maybe we gotta keep this sucker around for a little while”.
On Monday, Trump reportedly met with TikTok CEO and later commented that he has a “warm spot” for the app, underscoring its impact.
Trump’s remarks highlight TikTok’s influence in shaping public opinion, particularly younger demographics. TikTok, with its over 150 million U.S. users, has evolved from a simple social media app to a key player in influencing political narratives, particularly among younger audiences.
Political figures and campaigns have increasingly utilized TikTok’s algorithm-driven reach to connect with voters, share messages, and shape public discourse. Trump’s acknowledgment of the platform’s impact reflects this shift, as politicians leverage TikTok’s potential to amplify their voices and engage in a digital-first world.
Despite its popularity, TikTok has been at the center of a heated debate in the U.S. government. Lawmakers have raised concerns about TikTok’s ties to its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, and the potential for user data to be accessed by the Chinese government. These fears have led to ongoing discussions about banning the app outright or forcing a divestiture to ensure U.S. data security.
TikTok’s future in the U.S. has been uncertain since President Joe Biden signed a bill in April requiring its parent company, ByteDance, to sell the platform by January 19, 2025, or face a nationwide ban. Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia denied TikTok’s emergency request to delay enforcement of its ban, leaving the company with little choice but to escalate the matter to the Supreme Court.
The Chinese platform had argued in their emergency motion that immediate enforcement of the law would “shut down one of the nation’s most popular speech platforms for its more than 170 million monthly users in the U.S.”
With a recent filing at the Supreme Court, TikTok is asking the justices to block the law. In the filing, TikTok’s legal team called the legislation an “unprecedented speech restriction” that would shutter one of America’s most vibrant platforms for political discourse, artistic expression, and commerce.
TikTok, the widly popular social media app owned by Chinese tech firm ByteDance, finds itself at a critical juncture in its fight to remain operational in the United States.
Facing the prospect of a nationwide ban under the newly enacted Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, TikTok is pursuing two avenues for survival: a legal appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and an apparent outreach to President-elect Donald Trump, who has had a complicated history with the platform.
The legislation, signed into law earlier this year, effectively gives TikTok an ultimatum to divest its Chinese ownership or be banned by January 19, 2025. Under the law, Apple and Google would also be required to remove TikTok from their app stores, effectively cutting off the platform’s 150 million U.S.-based users. This two-pronged pressure has forced TikTok to explore both legal and political strategies to avert a shutdown.
On the same day it filed its Supreme Court appeal, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew met with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. The meeting suggests that TikTok is also pursuing a political strategy to survive the looming ban.
TikTok is contesting its proposed ban in court, and the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on the matter on January 10. Until then, the fate of the app and its millions of American users hangs in the balance.